Tag Archives: Vancouver Christmas Market

A treasured tradition for locals and visitors alike, theVancouver Christmas Marketreturns toJack Poole Plaza (at the Olympic Cauldron),November 21 – December 24, 2018, with extended hours from11:30am to 9:30pm. The city’s signature yuletide celebration amplifies and expands its festive offerings with more than 80 huts stuffed with sweets, treats, and treasures, coupled with an increased lineup of large-scale activities and live entertainment. Attracting a record number of more than 220,000 visitors last season, the market remains one of Vancouver’s beloved holiday events in which to savour the abundance of authentic German-inspired sights, sounds, and flavours.

“Every season, families, couples, and friends make their annual pilgrimage to feast upon festive delights, warm themselves with mulled wine, shop for unique treasures, and share the Christmas cheer,” says Malte Kluetz, Founder and President of the Vancouver Christmas Market. “This year, we are thrilled to present even more engaging holiday experiences for visitors of all ages to create lasting memories with their loved ones. Whether gathering to indulge in traditional German delicacies, shopping together for that one-of-a-kind gift, or meeting with friends to take in a wide range of special events including Children’s Wish Weeks with an exclusive visit and on-site activity with Vancouver Canucks defenseman Erik Gudbranson, Deluxe Date Night, Kids Day, Club Christmas Thursdays, or Carousel Fridays, we look forward to welcoming new and returning guests to celebrate this joyous time of year!”

Among this year’s expanded highlights is a cozy heatedAlpine Loungewhere visitors will be able to relax and enjoy hot beverages and delicious food in a warm holiday environment. Afterwards, guests can make their way outside to revel in the newWinterdecklocated beside the Alpine Lounge, featuring a charming entrance arch, a giant lit up picture frame, and stunning views of the North Shore. Couples will delight in venturing downLovers’ Lane– an Instagram-worthy 30-foot long tunnel adorned with 10,000 twinkling lights and mistletoe. ALove Lock Installationwill be placed near the tunnel to which lovers can attach a ‘Vancouver Christmas Market Love Lock’, serving as a beautiful symbol of love and partnership over the holiday season. Visitors will be dazzled bySanta in a 12-foot long sleigh floating underneath the Olympic Cauldron,and the return ofCanada’s first-ever Walk-In Christmas Tree,glittering with 36,000 twinkling lights. These magnificent sights will provide the perfect backdrop for guests to take festive photos with family and friends and share in the magic of the season.

A huge draw to the Vancouver Christmas Market is its signature array of mouth-watering delectables, including Glühwein (a hot-spiced mulled wine), German Bratwurst, Gulasch, Spätzle, Schnitzel, Strudels, Transylvanian Chimney Cakes, a selection of German beer, award-winning German style wine, and so much more. A variety of new local vendors will be offering the best food and drink BC has to offer including organic vegan and vegetarian fare from theOrganic Villa Vegan Haus,charcuterie from theCharcuterie Haus, sweet and savoury macarons prepared byBon Macaron Patisserie, syrup-filled pancakes made byMr. Hot Cakes, warm roasted chestnuts fromJJ’s Fresh Roasted Chestnuts, and gluten free hard apple cider made byHowling Moon Craft Cider.

In addition to Deutschland delicacies and returning favourites – such as the Christmas Carousel and the Christmas Pyramid’s ‘Flying Stage’ perched 10 feet high above the market offering a lively line-up of daily festive entertainment, visitors can wander throughout the market’s quaint pathways of huts, discovering lovingly crafted gifts and treasures.

Families will enjoy a multitude of holiday activities including the market’s newKinder Kraft Igloosponsored by 4Cats Arts Studio, featuring a market-wide Christmas scavenger hunt for children, as well as free arts and crafts. The Santa Photo Hut also returns along with cookie decorating for kids at the Gingerbread Haus.

New events and highlights at the 9th annual Vancouver Christmas Market include:

Children’s Wish Weeks | November 23 to December 7
The Vancouver Christmas Market is honoured to work with and support its charitable partner the Children’s Wish Foundation. During the market’s ‘Children’s Wish Weeks,’ please visit the market and make a donation to help raise $10,000 to make a deserving child’s wish come true.

Kids Day | December 1
Join Holly & Jolly for a day of family fun! Youth (13 and under) will be able to enter the market and enjoy rides on the Christmas Carousel by providing a donation to Children’s Wish Foundation.

Deluxe Date Night | December 5
Romance is always in the air at the Vancouver Christmas Market, but we’re hanging a little extra mistletoe for this special night of love! Enjoy 2-for-1 Entry at the gate as well as ‘deals for duos’ including 2-for-1 carousel rides, pretzels, ciders, and other paired discounts at select vendors.

Canucks Defenseman Erik Gudbranson Visits the Market | December 7Calling all Vancouver Canucks fans! We are delighted to announce that in support of Children’s Wish Weeks, November 23 – December 7, Canucks defenseman Erik Gudbranson will be on site to help make a child’s wish come true. Visitors who make a donation to Children’s Wish Foundation will have the chance to go head-to-head with Erik as they try to score against him. Are you skilled enough to take him on?

Purchase online to enjoy an abundance of savings including discounted pricing. A Fast Pass is an upgrade available exclusively online that can be added on to a regular entry ticket for $5 per person.
This offers guests the option to enter through an express line at the entrance and the carousel.
A Fast Pass also includes a 2018 Season Pass and can be used throughout the entire season!

Ho, ho, hold on tight! This Christmas season, come down to FlyOver Canada to fly with Santa and his elves on a magical flight across Canada and on to the North Pole. After meeting some of Santa’s elves, Chestnut and Pinecone, you’ll join them as they take flight across Canada looking for their fellow elves. You may even get a sneak peek of Santa’s Workshop as you soar over the North Pole.

Please note, this combo is exclusively sold online and is not offered in different price points. The combo passes will be sold until December 24th or while quantities last. The Vancouver Christmas Market passes are redeemable until December 24, 2017.

Largest Festivities to date at Expansive Seaside Site with More Than 55,000 Square Feet of German Jubilation

Vancouver, BC – The city’s signature yuletide celebration returns to its expansive seaside home, November 22–December 24, 2017 at Jack Poole Plaza (at the Olympic Cauldron) offering its largest, festivities to date. The treasured holiday tradition will feature more than 75 huts stuffed with sweets, treats and treasures, coupled with a multitude of festive family activities and live entertainment. Attracting a record number of more than 215,000 visitors last season, the Vancouver Christmas Market is one of the city’s cherished holiday experiences.

“We are delighted to return to Jack Poole Plaza again this season, warmly welcoming new and returning visitors to partake in our wide array of Christmas festivities, while discovering a number of exciting new activities and expanded highlights,” said Malte Kluetz, Founder and President of the Vancouver Christmas Market. “Whether shopping the market for that special, one-of-kind gift or indulging in the mouth-watering array of German delicacies, we look forward to seeing new and familiar faces during the most wonderful time of the year!”

Among this year’s expanded highlights will be Canada’s first-ever Walk-In Christmas Tree: a 30ft tall tree covered with 36,000 twinkling lights that guests can enter to experience a spectacular – and Instagram-worthy light display. The Christmas Pyramid also returns, but this year it will be taller than ever with the addition of a brand new‘Flying Stage’ perched 10ft high above the market. The Flying Stage will host a lively line-up of daily festive entertainment. The entertainment line-up is stacked with a wide range of musical talent performing a steady stream of seasonal favourites that span every genre – from jazz, blues, folk, pop, classical, and gospel.

Visitors will undoubtedly treat themselves to the market’s signature array of mouth-watering delectables, including Glühwein (a hot-spiced mulled wine), Bratwurst, Gulasch, Spätzle, Schnitzel, Kartoffelpuffer (potato pancakes), Strudels, and so much more. A variety of new local vendors will be offering the best food and drink BC has to offer including fresh sustainable seafood from Eat F.I.S.H., made-from-scratch Sicilian cannoli by the Cannoli King, award-winning German style wine from Wild Goose Winery, and organic beer made from local ingredients by Persephone Brewing Co.

In addition to Deutschland delicacies, rousing entertainment, and returning favourites – such as downtown Vancouver’s only Christmas Carousel and the warming Alpine Haus tent – visitors can wander throughout the market’s quaint pathways of huts, discovering lovingly crafted gifts and treasures that cry out to be slipped into stockings and placed under Christmas trees.

The Vancouver Christmas Market and Children’s Wish Foundation have partnered for the 2017 season in order to raise funds to grant the most heartfelt wishes of BC children diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. During the market’s ‘Children’s Wish Week’, from December 16 to 24, Children’s Wish will be collecting donations and selling ‘wish wands’ at booths throughout the market. Their mascot ‘Roary’ the lion and representatives from Children’s Wish will be onsite December 16 and 17 to help bring the magic of a wish to the Vancouver Christmas Market. Those who generously make a donation at the ticket booths will receive a complimentary Season Pass to the Vancouver Christmas Market.

Since 2010, the Vancouver Christmas Market has delighted Vancouverites and visitors to the city with authentic German-inspired festivities. Combining colourful décor, authentic gifts, savoury food & drink, and family entertainment, the yuletide celebration creates the perfect atmosphere to mix & mingle with friends & family, take in a quick drink after work, and observe a wide variety of cultural activities, old world confections, and seasonal entertainment.

LISTING INFORMATION

8th Annual Vancouver Christmas Market

Dates:

November 22 to December 24, 2017: 11am – 9pmDecember 24: Closed at 6pm

Vancouver Christmas Market will be hosting a Dry New Year’s Family Celebration on Saturday, December 31, 2016 from 11am-9pm at Jack Poole Plaza. This family-focused, dry event will offer a host a children’s entertainment, live music, food and gift vendors to ring in the New Year as a family.

This is the perfect event for the young and young at heart to embark on some holiday family fun. Mom and Dad will find it hard to keep up as little ones enjoy the following delightful activities:
Visit the Photo Hut for a family photo op.

Take a spin on the carousel!

Keep dry and warm up in the heated Alpine Haus.

Listen to live music from Des Larson, Paul Filek, and BANG.

Receive FREE kids glitter tattoos. Choose from fun designs that celebrate the New Year, German-style: A ladybug, a little pig, fireworks, and more!

Enjoy FREE kids balloon twisting.

Receive a FREE kids caricature: Get a funny artwork souvenir as we head into the New Year.

Please note that Vancouver Christmas Market is not an official viewing area for the 2016 New Year’s Eve fireworks. For detailed information about viewing zones, please visit: nyevan.com

{{The Giveaway!}}

I’ve got a Family 4pk of passes to giveaway to this New Year’s Eve event for one lucky Raincity Parent reader! This giveaway is open to residents of the Greater Vancouver Area and the Sea to Sky Corridor, 18 years and over only! Please enter via the Rafflecopter link below.

This family-friendly event is always a treat to go to with the abundance of shopping, amazing food and kid-friendly activities!

Nothing says “It’s Christmas Time in the City” like the Vancouver Christmas Market, launching its 7th season on November 26 at a new and expanded scenic site at Jack
Poole Plaza. Bigger, better, and brighter this year, the cherished annual event runs to
December 31 and features more of everything Vancouverites have come to love about this
German-flavoured festival of authentic food, drink, entertainment, and foraging for unique
treasures to stuff into stockings or tuck under the Christmas tree.

With more than 70 huts featured in the 2016 event, Malte Kluetz, Founder and President of theVancouver Christmas Market, says, “We’re thrilled by the number of vendors participating this
year and by the capacity our new location affords to add even more guests to the hundreds of
thousands of visitors who make our annual offering part of their family holiday tradition.”

Shiny and New …

The 2016 market will introduce Canada’s first-ever Christmas Pyramid: a 23-foot tall structure
adorned with angels representing various aspects of European culture. Designed locally by architect Jordan Kutev and Lukas One Productions, the rotating sculpture plays festive music
from various regions of Europe where Christmas Pyramids are a time-honoured tradition. Also
new this year is an enclosed Alpine Haus tent and seating area, designed to accommodate
more than 250 people and overlooking spectacular views of the North Shore.

The increased vendor space at Jack Poole Plaza allows for the introduction of many new sensations, such as daily demonstrations of the Feuerzangenbowle (“Fire Tongs Punch”), a
traditional German mulled wine and rum beverage whose ceremonial preparation includes
caramelizing a large sugar cone over the concoction. New vendor Olga Capone Cannoli
Company offers Italian-style cannoli made from an Old World recipe passed down from generation to generation since the 1930s. Those with dietary restrictions will want to visit new
vendor Marie’s Guilt Free Bakery where they’ll find gluten-free, egg-free treats that cater to the
needs of vegan and sugar-free diets. In total, the market will boast 24 food and drink huts –11 of
which are appearing for the first time in 2016.

New international vendors include Nica Ceramica, selling hand-made ceramic vases and other
products from Nicaragua that are difficult to find in Canada, and MisH MasH, featuring hand-
made Christmas angel ornaments and little elephant figurines from Africa.

This year, the market also offers gifts for the ecologically-minded with Eco Books 4 Kids
offering books about Canadian wildlife that are printed on FSC or recycled paper with vegetable
inks and non-toxic coatings, and Mistura & Fento’s handcrafted watches and sunglasses made
from wood and other sustainable materials.

Tried and True …

Recognizing that nothing succeeds like success, the market is delighted to welcome back many
of the vendors that have helped build its reputation for European charm and epicurean choices.
The signature array of mouth-watering German delectables will be back, including Glühwein
(hot-spiced mulled wine), Bratwurst, Gulasch, Spätzle, Handbrot, German Pizza, and so much
more. This year’s selection of German and Austrian beers includes Stiegl’s Radler, Stiegl’s
Pilsner, Erdinger Weissbier, and Erdinger Dunkel. Sweet tooths can be satisfied at The
Gingerbread Haus with its own line of artisanal German gingerbread, and ART Meets CHOCOLATE, which offers locally hand-crafted pieces of edible art.

Gift hunters will want to make their way to The Nutcracker House for classic Christmas
decorations made in the Erzgebirge region of East Germany, and to Käthe Wohlfahrt of
America, Germany’s largest Christmas retailer whose wares include ornaments made of wood,
mouth-blown glass, and hand-painted pewter. Herrnhuter Sterne is also back with stunning
star ornaments and the launch of a new product – handmade metal incense smokers from Huss/Neudorf. Market favourite Provence En Couleur Home Décor is returning with
unique wood kitchen utensils and soaps from France.

In the Mood …

The Vancouver Christmas Market swings into Yuletide with a lively line-up of entertainment,
including house band The Gingerbread Men. Dashing and debonair, The Gingerbread Men will
croon irresistible holiday classics. Also setting the seasonal mood will be Phat Santa Swing;
jazz pianist Aiden Miller; one-man cover band Rob Eller who channels performers from Dave
Matthews to Stephenwolf; and Andrew Mockler, an Auckland-based singer/songwriter originally
from Middlesbrough, UK.

Little ones can look forward to an array of activities designed to delight. From the market-wide
scavenger hunt to gingerbread decorating at Gingerbread Haus through assembling star
ornaments at the Herrnhuter Sterne Hut and riding the Christmas Carousel, Mom and Dad
may find it hard to keep up. The Vancouver Christmas Market mascots ‘Holly and Jolly’ will be
on hand for hugs and photo ops and the jolly old elf, Santa himself, will be ready to hear children
whisper their Christmas wishes when they visit him at the Photo Hut.

Perhaps the best memory of all to take away from the Vancouver Christmas Market is strolling
the twinkling pathways of a European-inspired Christmas village in the crisp winter air,
discovering the flavours, fun, and family feeling of the city’s premier pre-Christmas event.

Date: November 26 to December 31, 2016: 11am – 9pm
December 24: Closed at 6pm; December 25: Closed
Ticket prices: Single Admission from Adult $8 – Children 0-6, Free
Purchase online to receive a complimentary Season Pass!
Christmas Packages from $20

I’m pleased, once again, to be giving away a Family 4pk of tickets to the Vancouver Christmas Market! This giveaway is open to residents of the Greater Vancouver Area and Sea to Sky Corridor, 18 years and over. Please enter via the Rafflecopter link below.

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A treasured holiday tradition for locals and visitors alike, the Vancouver Christmas Market announced today that it will be moving from its original site at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza to its new, expansive seaside home at Jack Poole Plaza (at the Olympic Cauldron). Running November 26 – December 30, 2016, the city’s signature yuletide celebration will expand its revelry with more than 50,000 square feet of space and over 70 huts in which to savour the abundance of authentic German flavours.

“Much like our market-goers after they’ve indulged in generous helpings of Glühwein and Spätzle – we found ourselves bursting at the seams last year!” said Malte Kluetz, Founder and President of the Vancouver Christmas Market. “We could not be more thrilled about the move and by the number of vendors who wish to share and participate in the market – nor by the hundreds of thousands of Vancouverites who make it an annual holiday tradition. The move to Jack Poole Plaza means we can warmly welcome more guests to partake in the festivities, while rolling out a number of exciting surprises! We look forward to welcoming new and returning guests to our enchanting seaside home.”

Among this year’s expanded highlights will be Canada’s first-ever Christmas Pyramid: A 23-foot tall structure adorned with angels representing various aspects of European culture. Designed locally by architect Jordan Kutev, the magical sculpture rotates via a propeller at its summit and plays music from various regions. Further festive additions this year include an enclosed Alpine Haus tent and seating area, designed to accommodate more than 250 people while offering breathtaking views of the North Shore.

Visitors can anticipate indulging in the market’s signature array of mouth-watering delectables, including Glühwein (a hot-spiced mulled wine), Bratwurst, Gulasch, Spätzle, and much more. The increased vendor space allows for the introduction of many new sensations, such as daily demonstrations of the Feuerzangenbowle (literally, ‘Fire Tongs Punch’), a mulled wine and rum beverage whose ceremonial preparations include caramelizing a large sugar cone over the concoction. In total, the market will boast more than 22 food and drink huts –12 of which will appear for the first time in 2016.

In addition to Deutschland delicacies, rousing entertainment, and returning favourites – such as the beloved Christmas Carousel – visitors can wander throughout the market’s quaint twinkling pathways of huts, discovering lovingly crafted, one-of-a-kind gifts and treasures that cry out to be slipped into stockings and placed under Christmas trees.

Tickets:

Christmas comes early! In celebration of the Vancouver Christmas Market’s new home, a limited number of 7th Anniversary VIP Experience packages for two are currently on sale, while quantities last. The VIP Experience packages are $75 and Adult Admission for two includes:

Since 2010, the Vancouver Christmas Market has delighted Vancouverites and visitors to the city with authentic German-inspired festivities. Combining colourful décor, authentic gifts, savoury food & drink, and family entertainment, the yuletide celebration creates the perfect atmosphere to mix & mingle with friends & family, take in a quick drink after work, and observe a wide variety of cultural activities and entertainment.

I love perusing the German market, checking out the handmade decor and gift ideas, as well as sampling the abundance of über scrumptious food!

The kids are most excited to ride the carousel and have their photo snapped with the Gingerbread Twins!

The Vancouver Christmas Market, located in the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza, 650 Hamilton Street, Vancouver, runs from November 21st until December 24th. Doors are from 11am to 9pm daily, closing at 6pm on December 24th.